Ben Williams jogs to home plate surrounded by his teammates after hitting a walk-off grand slam in the first game of a double header against Steamboat Springs on Tuesday at Craig Middle School. The Moffat County High School baseball team shut the Sailors out in the first game, 13-0, and scored early and often in the second, winning 18-6.

Bulldogs sweep Sailors at home, strengthen playoff case

Carlos Maldonado watches a pitch in Tuesday against Steamboat Springs at Craig Middle School. The Moffat County High School baseball team swept the Sailors, 13-0 and 18-6, and moved closer to wrapping up a playoff berth.

Ben Williams has been a driving force for the Moffat County High School baseball team all season.

On Tuesday, in a double header against Steamboat Springs High School, Williams didn’t disappoint.

The Hayden High School senior hit a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the fifth inning to give the Bulldogs a 13-0 victory on their home diamond at Craig Middle School.

The game was stopped after five innings because of a rule stating a game will end if one team is up by 10 or more runs in the fifth inning or later.

“I have been working on my hitting a lot lately and I have been doing well all year at the plate,” Williams said. “It definitely felt good to beat Steamboat. That is always fun to do.”

The first game wasn’t the end of Williams’ success at the plate, however.

In his first at bat in the second game, Williams launched a solo homerun over center field fence to give the Bulldogs an early 1-0 lead.

Williams was intentionally walked in his next appearance, but his teammates stepped up to give MCHS the sweep of the Sailors with an 18-6 victory.

“We played really good ball,” Williams said of his team’s effort. “I think we only had one error, so we limited the mistakes.”

The Sailors head coach, Kellen Baker, said the mistakes where what cost his team.

“I think we just made more mistakes than they did,” he said. “We weren’t as sharp as we could have been and I don’t think we came ready to play.”

Cutter Pasternak batted in the first two runs of the night for the Sailors in the third inning of the second game with an RBI double. Pasternak had another RBI with a triple in the fourth.

Hunt Adams had a RBI single in the third, fourth and fifth innings.

Williams also contributed from the pitching mound, as he didn’t allow any runs in the five innings he pitched in the first game.

“At the plate, we couldn’t really piece it together,” Baker said. “Ben had a lot of strikes we couldn’t get to and it was just one of those nights.”

MCHS head coach Justin Folley said the two victories were “big” for his team.

“It was senior night and this was the last games the seniors will play here, so the wins were even bigger for them,” he said. “The whole team worked hard all week and it showed.”

The Bulldogs (6-8 overall, 6-4 Western Slope League) travel Saturday to Glenwood Springs for their last two games of the regular season.

MCHS and the Sailors (6-7 overall, 3-5 WSL) are fighting for the third and final WSL spot in the playoffs.

Folley said if his team can beat the last place Glenwood Springs Demons, they should make the playoffs.

“We are going into Glenwood to win two games,” he said. “If we get those two games, I am certain we will get in.”